The food industry is Norway’s second largest industry, and Europe’s largest. To develop this industry, competence from a wide range of research areas is vital. These areas, ranked by size, include microorganisms as well buildings and plants. Our contribution is especially based on thermodynamic processing of food, and of porous, hydrous materials in general.
Refining
Norway is recognized for environmental friendly farming and safe food production. Further, Norway is one of the world’s largest fishery and aquaculture nations with national and international interests. One of the world’s most densely populated and wealthy markets is within easy reach.
Thermodynamics in general, and particularly refrigeration technology is vital to financially sound and safe production and distribution of food. Due to the transient (time-variable) nature of the processes, the food heterogeneity, natural variation, complex 3-dimentional geometry and the temperature dependence of the thermo physic characteristics, this research area is especially challenging. Energy consumption in cooling plants and other processing equipment are, among other things, influenced by the abovementioned variations.
Contact persons:
Trygve M. Eikevik, Professor
Kristina Norne Widell, PhD-Stud.
Dewatering
Food storing stability may be increased by decreasing the water content. The functional properties may at the same time be aligned. Stockfish and clipfish have long been the most important dried industrial products of Norway. Traditional outdoor drying is now replaced by drying in closed, environmentally friendly and energy efficient drying tunnels run by heat pumps. Fish meal and breeding feed have become more important due to a steadily growing aquaculture industry. Products in the opposite end of the volume scale are e.g. various “snack” products and medical components.
Humid air thermodynamics and mass and heat transfer in porous media are basic elements in the dewatering process. When drying particles, the fluidized bed technology is often used.
